Kolokithopita - Greek Pumpkin Pie - Souvlaki For The Soul

a greek pie made with filo and dusted with cinnamon and powdered sugar.

Kolokithopita - Greek Pumpkin Pie

Kolokithopita is a Greek pumpkin pie made with shredded pumpkin, rice, and warm Fall spices - all encased in a crispy, light filo pastry. It's different, delightful and downright delicious.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Greek

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 45

Total Time 1 15

Servings serves

Calories 556kcal

Author Peter G

Ingredients

500 grams pumpkin shredded (see note 1)
150 grams sugar caster (superfine) - if using brown reduce to 100g
120 grams rice short-grain, uncooked (see note 2)
100 grams currants (see note 3)
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
10 sheets fillo pastry
150 mls olive oil extra virgin preferred
extra cinnamon and powdered sugar to dust

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C and grease your baking pan with a little olive oil. Make sure your filo is at room temperature or slightly cool. (see note 4)
Grate your pumpkin using a vegetable grater. (you could also use a food processor with the shredding attachment).
Place the shredded pumpkin in a kitchen towel or cloth over a large bowl and squeeze out all the excess liquid. (see note 5)
Combine the squeezed pumpkin, sugar, rice, currants, olive oil and spices in a bowl and combine well.
Brush the first five sheets of filo with olive oil and proceed to layer them in your pan, ensuring they are overlapping.
Spread the kolokithopita filling over the fillo and smooth it out. Tuck any excess fillo overhanging over the filling.
Take the following five pastry sheets, brush them with olive oil and layer them over the top. Next, brush the top of the pie with olive oil and score the pastry with a sharp knife to create a diamond pattern. (do not cut right into the pie - just the top layers of the filo). (see note 6)
Bake the kolokithopita in the oven for 40-45 mins until golden brown. Allow cooling before dusting with extra cinnamon and icing sugar.

Notes

Use a good quality pumpkin or butternut squash (not a carving pumpkin). If you're in a pinch, you can also use canned pumpkin purée - however, this will make the pie's texture quite soft.
Substitute the rice with chopped walnuts if it doesn't appeal to you (I think it's fantastic and adds a little structure and body).
Currants offer an extra hint of sweetness and provide a little texture. Substitute with black or regular raisins if you can't find these.
Prepare your filo. To work with commercial filo correctly, bring it out of the fridge (still in the box) and allow it to come to room temperature. When you're ready to work with it, place some parchment paper on your workbench and place the filo on top. Cover with some more parchment paper and a damp kitchen towel.
1. Using a damp kitchen towel directly on top of the filo causes the sheets to become too wet and gummy to use.
Remove excess moisture. It's essential to squeeze the excess water out of the pumpkin - this ensures the kolokithopita holds its shape and does not become too "loose" or soggy. (Using a kitchen towel and a little elbow grease gets the best results).
Score your filo. To score your filo pastry, use a sharp knife and cut through the top layers of the filo sheets. Scoring helps the steam escape while the pumpkin pie is baking - plus, it allows us to see our sliced portions.

Nutrition